


The Legacy

by Caiti (Caitriona_3)



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Multi, Not Avengers: Age of Ultron (Movie) Compliant, Not Captain America: Civil War (Movie) Compliant, Not Captain America: The Winter Soldier Compliant, Not Iron Man 3 Compliant, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-06
Updated: 2020-11-07
Packaged: 2021-03-08 22:00:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27423877
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Caitriona_3/pseuds/Caiti
Summary: HYDRA infiltrated SHIELD from the very beginning . . . and the founders weren't as blind as everyone thought.  They created their own shadowy network to keep an eye on things.  To make surethisgroup stayed free of infestation, they kept it all in the family.
Relationships: Clint Barton & Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton/Laura Barton, James "Bucky" Barnes & Natasha Romanov
Comments: 38
Kudos: 59
Collections: Bucky Barnes Bingo 2020, Darcy Lewis Bingo





	1. The Legacy - Cover Art & Moodboards

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, so I was working out some bingo ideas and suddenly a whole new universe came to mind. 
> 
> This chapter is the ART, but there is a multi-chapter story coming up!! Might be a little slow due to family, work, "Complicated", and a couple of other priorities, but I've got plans! Tags will be updated as chapters come up, but pretty much assume canon through The Avengers (2012) and **_maybe_** Dark World (2013) but everything else is kind of free game. Some I'll use, some I won't, and I'm pretty much writing this for fun!

[ ](https://imgur.com/rhjiHo0)

_“The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.”  
~Benjamin Disraeli_

[ ](https://imgur.com/rPAy2pb)

[](https://imgur.com/GEdZH7c)

[ ](https://imgur.com/9oqSGNx)


	2. Discovering the Legacy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Avengers find out about the existence of the Legacy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Introductions to the Legacy will be happening soon. I've done a brief timeline for myself, but definitely not sticking to canon.
> 
> Inspired by bingos:
> 
> Bucky Barnes Bingo - C3 - Free Space  
> Black Widow Bingo - O2 - Darcy Lewis  
> Darcy Lewis Bingo - R2 - Secret Identity

Chapter 1: Discovering the Legacy

Watching the new twins they’d rescued from HYDRA, Natasha Romanoff restrained her desire to test the boy’s speed by throwing a knife. He fidgeted, moved, and seemed unable to remain still for any appreciable amount of time. It began to irritate her. That didn’t help the need to strike out at his sister for playing with her brain. Wanda and Pietro Maximoff had been victims – she knew that, understood and accepted it. That didn’t mean Natasha liked having the girl poking at her mind.

Though she found Wanda’s current attachment to Clint to be rather amusing, almost cute.

Or she would – if Natasha allowed herself to unbend the tiniest amount.

Ever since the team found out about HYDRA’s survival and infiltration of SHIELD, they’d been combing the world for bases and hideouts and sleeper cells to take them down. Steve’s fury at the discovery had been . . . Well, she could admit it had been memorable. Apparently the good captain took the group’s continued existence as a personal affront.

Finding and rescuing his childhood best friend at one of those bases only increased his wrath. 

In their most recent mission, they’d found the twins – youngsters from a small nation called Sokovia. Wolfgang von Strucker, one of HYDRA’s leaders, had been performing experiments on people in an attempt to create an army of enhanced soldiers. When the Avengers arrived, he sent the twins after them – Pietro using his speed and Wanda attacking their minds. Only Natasha’s professionalism kept her from teaching the girl a lesson in manners. 

“Hold on!” Clint called out, shattering the silence.

Everyone grabbed for handholds and did their best not to fall as the Quinjet made an abrupt turn. “What the hell, Legolas?” Tony called out, sending an exasperated look towards the front. “New York’s north – why are we heading west?”

When no answer came from Clint, Natasha rose and strode towards the front, her scowl convincing the others to back off. Stepping up as close as possible, she rested a hand on his shoulder. “Clint?”

His shoulders heaved at her quiet voice. “Fury contacted me,” he replied, his voice almost as low as hers. “Someone’s got the location.” A shudder went through him. “He’s not sure how they got it yet, but there’s been a threat to the farmhouse.”

Her hand tightened. “I’ll prep the team.”

“Tash-.”

“We’ll be in time.”

She refused to allow any other thought to enter her mind as she turned back to the rest of the team. Curiosity, irritation, and concern filled most faces, though a flickering fear began to build in Wanda’s gaze. If Natasha had to guess, she figured the younger woman must be picking up on Clint’s emotional state. 

“Sitrep?” Steve demanded, eyes narrowing on her face.

“Fury’s been in contact,” Natasha explained as she scanned the team before focusing on him. “There’s a threat to Clint’s home.”

Tony rubbed a hand over his face. “We’re diverting because someone’s compromised a safe house?” 

“She said ‘home’.” 

At the rough, rusty-sounding voice, all attention shifted to the back of the Quinjet. The man standing there seemed unconcerned by the number of people staring at him, but Natasha knew better. She’d known him as ‘Yasha’ and Steve had known him as ‘Bucky’ – whatever name they called him, James Buchanan Barnes couldn’t hide from the two of them. Stoic and apathetic, he leaned against the metal wall to watch everyone. 

“What was that, Snowman?” Tony demanded. “We’re exhausted and half on the run since we know damn well there’s a mole in SHIELD – and don’t get me started on the lack of vetting that-.”

“Obadiah Stane.”

That name cut off Tony’s voice like a guillotine. In other circumstances, it might be amusing to watch Tony Stark open and close his mouth like a goldfish, but now didn’t feel like the time. Instead, Natasha arched an eyebrow at James. “Stane?” she repeated.

“Stones and glass houses,” James shrugged. His eyes shifted back to Tony. “She said ‘home’, not ‘house’. It’s not a safe house that’s been threatened.”

“Semantics?” Bruce offered.

“No.” Natasha shook her head. “I said ‘home’ and that’s what I meant. His home . . .” Her voice trailed off and she glanced towards the cockpit. Clint didn’t speak, didn’t look back, but he lifted his hand, giving her permission. Drawing in a breath, she turned back to the team. “The threat is to his family.”

“Are agents allowed to have families?”

“Tony.” Steve’s quiet voice cut off any sound. He rose, blue eyes searching as they met Natasha’s. “How long until we arrive?”

“Two hours,” Clint announced, his voice tight and hard. “Tops.”

“Understood.” Now the team leader’s voice shifted, moving from ‘Steve’ to ‘Captain America’. “Widow, give us the basics of the location,” he ordered. “Once we’ve got an idea, I want everyone to get what rest they can in case we have to hit the ground running.” Before she could speak, he sent a sharp look towards the twins as they moved closer. 

“We can help,” Wanda offered, her tone quiet and apologetic. 

Pietro shrugged when they looked at him. “She is not wrong.”

“Let’s see what we come up with,” Steve decided, turning his attention back to her. “What kind of ground do we have?”

Stepping up, Natasha began to give them the basic layout of the farm, along with some of the hidden defenses. Not all of them, of course – teammates they might be, but that didn’t mean she needed to reveal all the aces. 

Time passed, both too fast and too slow, as they hurtled towards the Barton farm. After finishing the team’s debriefing, she stationed herself in the copilot’s seat so she could keep an eye on her partner. The rest of the team did its best to relax, though she could see Tony talking on his phone, probably trying to get more intel from JARVIS. Or possibly trying to reassure Pepper of his well-being. Steve and James both stretched out in seats, eyes closed – soldiers learned fast how to get rest when they could and neither man forgot those lessons. Thor seemed to be doing the same. His eyes remained closed and his breathing deep in any case, though she supposed he could be meditating like Bruce. Wanda and Pietro appeared to be the only ones jittery with nerves.

Possibly due to the situation . . . possibly due to be surrounded by suspicious Avengers. 

“Huh.”

“What is it?” Natasha asked, swiveling to follow Clint’s eyeline out the front window. She heard movement behind her, a sign the team came to attention at the sudden interruption of the silence. “What do you see?”

“Someone’s waiting, leaning on the gate,” he replied. “It’s . . . damn.”

“What?” Steve demanded. “Who is it?”

“Darcy.”

Thor pushed forward, his armored bulk dwarfing Natasha and Clint both. “Lady Darcy?” he probed, frowning out the view screen. “Why would she be here?”

“Don’t know.” Clint’s hand flew over the controls. “But that means HYDRA’s not here.”

“Trust the girl that much?” Tony asked, arms folded over his chest. “Pretty faces can hide trouble too, you know.”

“Lady Darcy would never betray us,” Thor protested, his frown growing fierce.

“She’s a friendly,” Clint agreed. “And trust me, if anyone’s got a reason to hate HYDRA-.” His words trailed off as he glanced back at the team, his gaze lingering on Steve, James, and the twins. “Well, let’s just say she’s been raised to be anti-Nazi – and anything that comes from them.”

“How do you know that?” Suspicion rode heavy in James’ voice and everyone could hear the metallic sounds as his arm seemed to cycle through its settings. 

“Her mother’s heritage is Jewish and Romany,” Clint replied. “And her grandparents were both survivors of Auschwitz.”

Sam whistled. “That would do it.”

“That’s not in her files,” Natasha noted, cocking an eyebrow at her partner. 

“I know.” 

“Not helpful.”

“Sorry, Nat.” He did sound apologetic, but also stubborn, so she gave him another look. Drawing a deep breath in through his nose, he seemed to be searching for the right words. “We talked a lot in New Mexico before I got pulled for Pegasus.”

Which still didn’t actually answer her question, but she would let it go for now. Once she got him alone, she would get the rest of the story. Instead, Natasha watched as he set the Quinjet down in the open field closest to the gate. Everyone turned towards the rear exit hatch, but Clint managed to slide through them after shutting down the engines so he could stride out with Thor. Even as they made their way down, Natasha watched as Darcy pushed away from the gate to amble their way.

“Hey, team!” 

The bright smile and happy wave gave off the impression of a nonchalant, carefree attitude, but Natasha watched as sharp blue eyes scanned the area. Not an agent, no, but Darcy Lewis held herself like someone with training. And the taser she tucked into her pocket . . . she clearly knew how to use it. 

“Lady Darcy!” Thor strode forward to give the girl a hug. “I had not expected to find you here!”

“Yeah, well, no one knew how long it would take you guys to get here, so . . . better safe than sorry, right?” Darcy stepped back from the hug and patted the man’s chest. Turning, she gave another smile to Clint, this one strong with reassurance. “Your family is all good,” she promised. “Not so much as a scratch.”

“HYDRA?” he pressed. Natasha could see him quivering to run to the house, to check on Laura and the children, but he held himself back. “Fury said-.”

“We don’t know how they got the intel yet,” Darcy replied. “But there are a couple of live ones trussed up in your barn.” Mischief danced at the edges of her smile, a dark light gleaming in her gaze. “Figured you might want to ask them.” When the team focused on her, she lifted her shoulders in an artless shrug. “Some of them ended up dead, but the guys took care of disposal.”

“Guys?” Steve repeated.

“Hey,” she grinned. “I’m an old-fashioned girl. Might be willing to shoot them, but body disposal is definitely a man’s job.” Her grin broadened as Steve gave a reluctant chuckle. 

“Laura?” Clint breathed out. “The kids?”

“Laura’s in the kitchen and I’m pretty sure she commandeered Charlie and Derek to help her prep and cook.” Darcy wrinkled her nose as his shoulders seemed to relax. “The rest of us were banished from the area after Rose tried stealing a couple of breadsticks. I did warn her about Thor’s appetite and . . . kind of guestimated on what a pair of super soldiers might eat.” Her eyes danced over the crowd before refocusing on him. “Lila batted her dark eyes and she managed to con a couple of the others into a tea party.”

“Tea party?” Wanda blinked.

“Yep. I’ve got blackmail for years now.” Darcy turned a searching gaze on the twins. “You two are new.”

“We found them in Europe,” Clint informed her before refocusing the conversation. “And Cooper?”

“Oh, he’s getting an astronomy lesson.” Her smile deepened. “He really shouldn’t have told Jane about his interest in the cosmos.”

“Good.” Almost all the tension drained from Clint’s shoulders. Then he lifted his eyebrows at Darcy. “Now, who the hell are all these people you just listed off?”

“Wait! Wait! Wait!” Tony held up both hands. “You don’t know them, but you’re fine with it?” 

“Darcy’s okay with them, I’m okay with them,” he shrugged, his gaze sliding over to the genius. “And if they took out the HYDRA team, that’s a big plus in my mind.” He turned back to the young woman. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to know.”

“As do I,” Natasha agreed, her own eyebrows rising.

“Hey, Lila’s hero!” Darcy beamed. “I’ve been wanting to meet you!” When Natasha tilted her head, she chuckled. “But time for that later? Will it help if I tell you two of our number are Sharon Carter and Antoine Triplett?”

“It might,” she allowed as she exchanged a quick glance with Clint. “And they are . . . where?”

“Carter’s in the barn, keeping an eye on the trussed up bad guys,” Darcy supplied. Wicked humor sparkled in her eyes. “Trip’s having a pretty princess tea party.”

The image that painted in Natasha’s mind drew a slow smile. “Excellent blackmail,” she agreed.

“Two of your team with Laura,” Clint noted. “Two with Lila.”

“Yep!” Reaching out, Darcy patted his arm. “Dani and Trip are with Lila, Rose and Carter are in the barn, and Gaspard is keeping an eye on Jane and Cooper.” She tilted her head towards the house. “Jake’s on the roof, keeping an eye on everything.” Then she spread her hands. “And I’m the welcoming committee.”

Steve stepped forward. “Welcoming committee?” he repeated.

“For what organization?” James added. “And how’d you get word of HYDRA?”

“How do you think Fury got word?” she shot back before giving an unruffled shrug. “And as far as the organization? Peggy Carter named us the Legacy.”

Bemusement filled both men’s eyes. “Whose legacy?” James probed.

“Yours.” 

Natasha went still as he reared back, surprise and concern flaring in his ocean blue eyes. Despite being one of the people who knew him best, she couldn’t make out all of the layers in that look. But she did understand the concern. **His** legacy? That could cover a wide range of history – and the good portion of it would not be good.

“Mine?” James bit out the word, his voice a rumbling growl of warning.

“Well, technically the Howling Commandos,” she replied, this time with an innocent blink. “But you’re in there.”

Clint blew out a sigh. “Darcy,” he began, resigned chastisement in his voice.

“Clint,” she began, her tone a teasing echo of his, but he held up a hand.

“No.” For a long moment, he looked at her and then shook his head. “You know what, I’m going to hold the lecture. You’ll get it later. For now, I want to see my wife and my kids. Then I want a look on the bastards who targeted them. After that, I’ll think about the lecture.”

“Sure.” Reaching up, she touched her ear. Natasha tilted her head and spotted the small communication device tucked into her ear. Her eyebrows rose again and Darcy grinned at her. “Avengers coming in,” she announced. “They’ve got a couple of newbies, so no one overreact.” She paused and then rolled her eyes. “Since they’re not in restraints, I’m going to figure they’re friendlies.” Another pause led to her making a face. “Carter, how about **you** have the argument with them? I’m just going to figure that between two geniuses, three soldiers, two agents, and a god-slash-alien with centuries of experience, they would know whether or not it’s safe to have them here.”

More than one person snickered at her words, but it was Tony’s reaction that brought the smile to Natasha’s lips.

“Oh, I **like** her,” he announced to Bruce. “We need to steal her.”

Darcy tapped her ear and gave Tony a quick once over. “You might actually be able to afford me,” she acknowledged, “but I’m stubborn, demanding, and highly sarcastic. Plus, you’ll have to talk Jane into it. Unless it’s an emergency, where Jane goes, my flag goes.”

“Jane Foster, genius astrophysicist and Point Break’s ladylove?”

“That’s the one.”

Interest kindled in his eyes. “What bribe would work?” 

She cocked an eyebrow at him but turned to Clint. “Go on,” she encouraged. “Go see the family. No reason to wait on us.” He nodded and took off. Turning, she started for the farmhouse at a slower pace. “You lot coming?” she called back over her shoulder.

Natasha let the others follow, choosing to bring up the rear. It would let her watch their backs while also giving her time to consider the little clues she’d picked up from Darcy’s words. James fell back to walk beside her. “Who is she?” he asked.

“Before today I’d have said a civilian who got caught up in intergalactic affairs due to being in the right time and place,” she replied. “Or wrong,” she shrugged. “Depending on your viewpoint.”

“And now?”

“Apparently her file needs updating.”

“Howling Commando legacy?” he asked, eyes narrowing on the farmhouse.

She looked ahead and spotted the figure standing on the roof, a rifle in hand. When Darcy waved at him, he lifted a hand in return before moving out of sight. “Antoine Triplett is the grandson of Gabe Jones,” Natasha replied. “And Sharon Carter is Peggy Carter’s great-niece. Other than that . . .” Her voice trailed off and she felt the unhappy grimace settle on her lips. Making herself smooth it out, she lifted a shoulder. “I don’t know.”

But she intended to find out.


End file.
